The relationship between physical and wellness measures and injury in amateur rugby union players

Objectives: To investigate factors associated with injury in amateur male and female rugby union players. Design: A prospective cohort study. Setting: Amateur rugby clubs in Ireland. Participants: Male (n = 113) and female (n = 24) amateur rugby union players from 5 of the top 58 amateur clubs in Ireland. Main outcome measures: Pre-season testing included physical tests assessing hamstring flexibility, dorsiflexion range of movement, adductor muscle strength and foot position. Wellness questionnaires assessed sleep quality (PSQI), coping skills (ACSI-28) and support levels (PASS-Q). Players were monitored throughout the season for injury. Results: The time-loss match injury incidence rate was 48.2/1000 player hours for males and 45.2/1000 player hours for females. Two risk profiles emerged involving; ‘age + navicular drop + training pitch surface’ (53%) and ‘age + navicular drop + groin strength’ (16%). An inverse relationship between groin strength and groin injury was found for the ‘backs’ players (−0.307, p < 0.05). Using the PSQI, 61% of players had poor sleep quality, however no relationship between the wellness questionnaires and injury was found. Conclusion: Two injury risk profiles emerged, associated with subsequent injury occurrence. Using these risk profiles, individualized prevention strategies may be designed regarding deficits in groin muscle strength and identifying foot alignment.